I'm a writer. You just never know what might come to mind for me to blog about.

Monday, March 08, 2010

Split-Personality or Just Taking the Middle Road?

Have you ever taken one of the "right brain" vs "left brain" quizzes to determine which side of your brain is the most dominant?

The right brain is the creative side of your thinking. It's where emotions, gut instincts, intuition, and visioning takes place.

The left brain is the more technical side of your thinking. It's where you analyze, research, and process ideas.

I've taken multiple tests of this kind and I always fall squarely in the middle. There is no "middle" brain folks. So what does this mean? All it means is that I use both sides of my brain to an equal amount. At times, I'm very analytical and methodical in making decisions, while at other times, I make decisions based upon my emotions or gut instinct. Sometimes both sides of my brain wrestle. I know what should be my choice based upon knowledge, however, my heart tugs me toward a second choice because it "feels" right.

I suppose that's why I have problems when I write. At times I'm letting my right brain control the word flow and feeling wonderful with what is happening...but then, my left brain editor kicks in and tells me this is all hogwash. It will never fly. The plot isn't strong enough, the characters need more development.

However, I need the right brain word dump to get the draft done, but the left brain takes over during the edits. Controlling which brain is dominant becomes the tough part. It's not a cognitive choice for me. I may "know" which side of my brain needs to drive, but real life and distractions come into play.

So, how about you? Are you right or left brain dominant? How does that play into your writing?